Hwy 97 lane expansion

[Glacier]

The province is saving billions upon billions of dollars in their expansion and widening of highway 1 through Burnaby, Surrey, Langley, Abbotsford because the right-of-way was 200m wide, and they can add not just 3 lanes each way, but potentially up to 6 without expropriating more land.

Some geographic features limit this in other places, but in settled areas, it's not hard to think ahead, and those are the areas that don't have steep canyons. Take the 450km section of highway 97 from Trash Creek to Princess George. They are not separating the lanes at all, and are allowing new development right up to the highway. They are four laning the entire thing, and will need to expropriate land because they didn't think ahead. This is flat land with no canyons.

Also, it's safer for wildlife. The Alaska highway, run by the Federal government in northern BC has a massive wide swath of right-of-way for all 500+km of it. That's so you can see the moose before you it's coming through your windshield.

By contrast, the 700km highway 37 (Cassiar highway) is provincially run, and the private land and forest goes right up to the highway's edge. You don't see moose on that highway unless they're standing in the middle of the road.

[averagejoe]

Nice to see the RCMP out patrolling this work zone the past couple of days. So many speedsters! Remember it's 60 Km an hour whether or not workers are there working....it's a work zone 24 hours a day.

[Grandan]

Some geographic features limit this in other places, but in settled areas, it's not hard to think ahead, and those are the areas that don't have steep canyons. Take the 450km section of highway 97 from Trash Creek to Princess George. They are not separating the lanes at all, and are allowing new development right up to the highway. They are four laning the entire thing, and will need to expropriate land because they didn't think ahead. This is flat land with no canyons.
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I used to cruise through that area when I wuz a pup and we called it Crotch Crack back then, I guess things have got much worse then?
I think all recent highways are built much wider than in the past but I'm thinking 200 ft not metres.
Fences along Hwy 1 through the Fraser Valley seem closer than 100 m, I say without fact checking.

[vinnied]

I think that continued education to compel smokers to keep their smoking material within their cars is a great start rather than spend billions to ensure that roadside vegetation is kept cleared beyond the flick range of butts.

Haa.. Everyone is well enough educated by the time they're old enough to travel our roads, to know not to toss cigarette butts out the window, yet it continues to happen. Making me personally believe , it is being done intentionally. And although I know its not possible on every highway, but a buffer would certainly help reduce firefighting costs.